Taxes Flashcards
What were the two categories of tax?
Direct and indirect
Difference between direct and indirect taxes
Direct = burdened on individuals' incomes and collected by royal officials Indirect = Levied on goods and duties, collected by tax farmers
How much did direct taxes make up of the government’s income?
1/3
How much did indirect taxes make up of the government’s income?
1/2
What was the oldest of all of France’s state taxes?
Taille
The Taille was the royal government’s most profitable impost, how much did it bring in every year?
About 20 million livres
Why were the First and Second Estates exempt from Taille payment?
It was intended as a payment for military service - the Second Estate fought and the First Estate could not fight
Who did the burden of the Taille fall mostly on?
Peasants and rural landholders
Why was the Taille first imposed?
To meet the cost of the Seven Years’ War
Why was the Taille the most unpopular tax?
It was inconsistent because it was easy to evade, particularly for city dwellers
The amount could vary significantly from year to year
How was the Taille calculated?
According to the value of property owned and income received
Was the Taille direct or indirect?
Direct
How much was the Vingtième tax on income?
5%
When was the Vingtième introduced and then renewed?
1749
Renewed at the beginning of the Seven Years’ War in 1756 and again in 1760
Why was the Vingtième introduced?
To offset war costs
Was the Vingtième a direct or indirect tax?
Direct
When did most people expect the Vingtième to be withdrawn? What did Louis XVI do instead, despite opposition from the parlements and the people?
End of Seven Years’ War in 1763
Louis continued to renew it
When did Capitation become permanent?
Early 18th century
When was Capitation first introduced?
1695
Why was Capitation first introduced?
A wartime measure
What determined how an individual paid the Capitation tax?
Profession
How many different payment levels for Capitation were there?
22
Depending on social class, what did the payment levels of Capitation range from?
1-2000 livres
Who was taxed by the Vingtième?
Third Estate
Who was taxed by Capitation?
In the theory the Second and Third Estates
Over time the nobility found ways to greatly reduce the
In practice the capitation was an addition to what?
The taille
When was Capitation abolished?
After the Revolution
Was Capitation direct or indirect?
Direct
What was the Gabelle?
A duty payable on salt
Was the Gabelle a direct or indirect tax?
Indirect
How was salt sold to prevent smuggling, black-marketeering and avoidance of the Gabelle?
In minimum amounts at official stores
By the 1780s, how much did the Gabelle raise per annum? What % of the royal government’s taxation revenue was this?
55 million livres
10%
Why was the Gabelle widely unpopular?
It was payable by everyone and difficult to avoid
What was the Aidas tax?
A tax on food and drink
What did the Aidas tax particularly target?
Wine, the most popular alcoholic drink in the 18th century
Was the Aidas a direct or indirect tax?
Indirect
Who paid the Aidas?
Everyone
What was the Octrios tax?
A tariff on goods entering towns and cities, particularly Paris
Was the Octrios tax direct or indirect?
Indirect
Who was taxed by the Octrios?
Everyone
Indirect taxes were so important that many French cities maintained what?
High medieval walls
Why did many French cities maintain high medieval walls?
To force goods coming into the city to pass through the gates, where they were inspected and taxed
